Monthly Archives: October 2014

“At the very least, new authors should be blogging” – that’s what publishers and agents expect. Blogs are an essential tool of any writer. Not only does it get you writing on a regular schedule, it lubricates your writer’s brain, eases that fear of putting yourself out there in the world.
.1. Top Authors are BloggingTop author blogs include those of fantasy authors Neil Gaiman or J.A. Konrath, spirituals Paulo Coelho, Eckhart Tolle and Deepak Chopra, and business authors Tim Ferriss and Malcolm Gladwell. They all have sold millions of copies, yet they still blog for fun and… Read more

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If you would like to get more support in all things publishing, have your book intensively promoted and learn how to navigate social media sites – or to learn how you can make yourself a name as an author through content writing: We offer this and more for only $179 for 3 months – or less than $2/day! Learn more about this customized Online Seminar / Consulting for writers: http://www.111Publishing.com/Seminars

Please check out all previous posts of this blog (there are more than 1,130 of them : ) if you haven’t already. Why not sign up to receive them regularly by email? There is also the “SHARE” button for easy sharing at Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, Facebook etc.

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Do you want to be on Google’s first page to be found easily by readers and also to improve your search engine optimization? Using Google+ should be on your main effort on the list of activities! Make sure that your Google+ social network usage will help with your search rankings:

Priority is to get lots of followers, to make sure that your posts are read by as many people as possible and that they get a chance to go viral.

Link your Google+ page to your own website. Get more recommendations for your site in Google search and grow your audience on Google+.

Fill in the information for your profile and pages completely. Google prioritizes different areas of the profile for both on-page optimization and in search results: the first 55 characters of your Introduction are important for search results within Google+.

Encourage +1′s. Do you have a +1 button (Google+ Sharing Button) on your website? The +1 button is Google’s much more powerful answer to the Facebook Like button. The number of +1′s your page gets will show up in search results, even if a searcher is not logged into Google+.

If you would like to get more support in all things publishing, have your book intensively promoted and learn how to navigate social media sites – or to learn how you can make yourself a name as an author through content writing: We offer all this and more for only $179 for three months – or less than $2 per day! Learn more about this customized Online Seminar / Consulting for writers: http://www.111Publishing.com/Seminars

Please check out all previous posts of this blog (there are more than 1,130 of them : ) if you haven’t already. Why not sign up to receive them regularly by email? There is also the “SHARE” button for easy sharing at Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, Facebook etc.

Life experience and passion are necessary to make any kind of writing pop off the page. The most famous authors today have meshed their life’s work, or their favorite hobbies, with their writing. Clive Cussler, Dan Brown, John Grisham and Robin Cook are a few of the authors that have written to their passion by writing about the subjects with which they are most familiar.

The writing of many authors seems more real because it is infused with their own life experiences. Some writers are inspired by personal tragedy or political beliefs. Some authors are motivated by a dysfunctional childhood to create a unique writing style or imaginary world.

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Who are Some Famous Authors Who Have Survived Incredible Odds?

• Emily Elizabeth Dickinson (1830–1886) was an American poet who lived a mostly introverted and reclusive life. She was considered eccentric. Although she was a prolific poet, fewer than a dozen of her poems were published during her lifetime. Those that were published were altered significantly by publishers. It was not until after her death that the full scope of Dickinson’s work was discovered.

• Steven King (1947-present) is, arguably, the top-selling author of horror novels in the United States. Many of his books have been made into successful motion pictures and mini-series over the decades. Mr. King wasn’t always successful. His first major work, Carrie (1973) was rejected over 30 times. His wife retrieved an early draft out of the trash and demanded that he finish it. In the late 1970’s, Carrie was made into King’s first blockbuster movie. Another struggle that the author dealt with was the desertion of his father when King was 2 years old. The family was left near penniless. Steven King’s most recent complication occurred in 1999. He was walking on a rural highway when he was struck by a distracted driver. He suffered multiple injuries.

• J.K Rowling (1965-present) is the United Kingdom’s top selling author. She writes the Harry Potter Series. She has had many challenges in her life, including the following: her mother’s illness and death, a challenging relationship with her father, domestic abuse during her first marriage (finally ending in divorce), a miscarriage, clinical depression, and poverty.

• Malala Yousafzai (1997-present) is a Pakistani author, social activist, and youngest-ever Nobel Prize recipient. She was the co-recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014. She fought for human rights, including equal education for girls, in her home province where the local Taliban had often banned females from attending school. She began blogging anonymously on the BBC Urdu website in 2008 about the militant Taliban’s growing influence. She kept blogging despite death threats. In October, 2012, she was shot three times by a Taliban gunman while traveling on her school bus. Yousafzai’s memoir I Am Malala: The Story of the Girl Who Stood Up for Education and was Shot by the Taliban, was published in October, 2013.

• Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811-1896) was an American abolitionist and author. Her novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1852) was a depiction of life for African Americans under slavery. It energized anti-slavery forces in northern states while provoking widespread anger in the southern states. President Abraham Lincoln is quoted as saying that Harriet Beecher Stowe’s book helped the northern states to win the Civil War. She and her husband were critics of slavery. They supported the Underground Railroad by temporarily housing several fugitive slaves in their home.
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What Can These Achievers Teach Us?

• Address topics that impassion your imagination and real life. Harriet Beecher Stowe and Malala Yousafzai wrote about extreme social injustice. The works of J.K Rowling and Emily Dickinson are fueled by fantasy born of childhood isolation and personal trauma.

• Write on topics, or in styles, that will change the world. Uncle Tom’s Cabin opened the eyes of America to the horrors of slavery. Emily Dickinson’s groundbreaking style of poetry broadened the spectrum of that genre.

• Illuminate your own world as you envision it; readers may want to become temporary residents. Most people do not live in a world of haunted hotels, psychopathic high-school students and children, or cars that seem to come to life. Yet, Steven King’s horror novels have been bestsellers for over 30 years. Many readers choose to read to escape reality. They are looking for something new.

• Expose the truth at all costs, no matter how ugly it is. Malala Yousafzai fought to expose the repellant truth of legitimized social injustice in her own country despite bullying and an assassination attempt. I believe that the unbelievable perseverance of survivors like the five trendsetters listed above can inspire every author. They are inspirational in how they dealt with personal trauma, their refusal to quit, their groundbreaking techniques and topics, and their passion. May we follow their examples as we write to our own truth and passion!

Now it’s your turn: How have you meshed your passion with your writing?
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Traci Lawrence writes about her passion: communication, relationships, the value of individuals and rising above verbal bullying, or trash talk. She lives in the Northern Virginia area of the United States and teaches English, among other subjects. Please find more on her blog, and read her book: Accept No Trash Talk

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If you would like to get more support in all things publishing, have your book intensively promoted and learn how to navigate social media sites – or to learn how you can make yourself a name as an author through content writing: We offer all this and more for only $179 for three months – or less than $2 per day! Learn more about this customized Online Seminar / Consulting for writers: http://www.111Publishing.com/Seminars

Please check out all previous posts of this blog (there are more than 1,120 of them : ) if you haven’t already. Why not sign up to receive them regularly by email? Just click on “Follow” in the upper line on each page – and then on “LIKE” next to it. There is also the “SHARE” button underneath each article for easy sharing at Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr and StumpleUpon.
Thanks a lot for following:

THE most often asked question by writers and would-be self-publishers in Google searches: “How to publish a book”. This prompts to show up 348 Million answers – many from Vanity Publishers, who lay out their traps… but also some useful tips. However not every advice is suitable for every book and every author. Only the manuscript, the authors goals, their marketing knowledge (often zero) and the potential readership for the upcoming book is known, publishing advice can be customized – not one size fits all.

.Over the Phone / Skype Consultation
It’s a budget-friendly way to get started with your publishing process, building your platform and marketing your book(s). Consider discussing your book with an experienced (30+ years) publishing and book marketing professional, in a personalized conversation. This valuable, yet very inexpensive package includes a meeting of up to 3 hours – or two meetings of 1,5 hours via phone in North America or Skype (worldwide).A very affordable fee of only $79 allows every author to get professional advice and help. Order secure and conveniently via PayPal.

.Great Benefit for You:

Are you thinking about publishing your own book?

Do you have a book you think will sell but don’t know how to market it?

Do you want to start seriously publishing in POD (Print-on-Demand)?

Do you want to learn all the in-and-outs of navigating Social Media?

Do you want to avoid costly mistakes and time-consuming “trial and errors”?

Do you want to do it right from the beginning, publishing in a professional way?

.How it Works:
As better you are prepared as more you will get out of our “meeting”. Write down all your questions you might have in regards of publishing and book marketing. Prior to our conversation, you’ll fill out a comprehensive questionnaire, designed to familiarize us with your opportunities and audience. We will buy and read your e-book or go through parts of your manuscript if it is a print book only and study / evaluate the questionnaire, once it is filled out and returned to us.
After the consultation session you will get an analysis of your book or your concept.

.Practical, Results-Driven StepsYour consultation will focus on your most effective strategies for your book marketing and will help you prioritize practical, results-driven steps to best promote you and your book. If you haven’t published before we will help you to become familiar with all the possibilities available and their pro’s and con’s, so that you can make an informed decision.

.Topics We Will Discuss
We will provide a comprehensive introduction to book marketing as well as more targeted feedback on specific concerns and questions, including but not limited to:

Where to get an ISBN, find editors, e-book formatters, lay-outers, cover artists

Selling through Amazon and other online retailers

How to get book reviews – before and after your book launch

Book Distribution and direct book sales

Public Relation and media campaigns

Possibilities of translations or foreign right sales

Getting bookstores and libraries to carry your book – worldwide

How to avoid traps at “self publishing” and “vanity publishers”

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After your consultation, we’ll send you a follow-up guide with hundreds of tips and links as a guide for your future publishing and book marketing activities. This way you don’t have to get distracted by taking notes while we are talking, and you will always have a “blue print” for future book publishing.

.Our publishing and book marketing consultation and coaching is appropriate for and can be tailored to writers who are going the traditionally or the self-publishing route. A very affordable fee of only $79 allows every author to get professional advice and help.
To get started go to http://www.111publishing.com/consultation-via-phone-or-skype/

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Please check out all previous posts of this blog (there are more than 1,120 of them : ) if you haven’t already. Why not sign up to receive them regularly by email? Just click on “Follow” in the upper line on each page – and then on “LIKE” next to it. There is also the “SHARE” button underneath each article for easy sharing at Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr and StumpleUpon.
Thanks a lot for following:

.The coming weeks will be a very busy time for authors: they might even participate in NaNoWriMo, creating 50,000-word novels, spending long hours of writing and editing, or tinkering about self-publishing, starting pre-sales for their upcoming book on Amazon, or have finally their first book launch. Writing books and then self-publishing can turn into a full-time job – a business or profession that very few authors studied before. So how can we help writers and self-publishers with publishing consulting and promoting their books?
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Take Advantage of Our Knowledge
Our experience in publishing spans more than 30 years, including e-publishing and writing for magazines. During our popular 3-month Online Seminar you will learn everything to build your platform and your author brand – and at the same time promote your books in a couple of weeks.
If you would study and research everything necessary to become a successful self-publisher it would take you years…
This is the most successful marketing service we offer, combining all the information and support an author needs to plan for a successful book release, or to boost the exposure of an already published book – helpful to boost sales for the upcoming holiday season. We certainly help you to promote your book during this time through our Social Media accounts and blogs. The author interview and articles about your book will stay at our high-ranking blogs and websites forever.

.Individual Consulting – Tailored to Your Book
The first step at the Online Seminar will be for us to read your book to understand your writing and your potential audience, while you will fill out a detailed questionnaire. This gives us an overview, identifying your specific strengths and opportunities. One size does not fit all with book marketing, so each marketing plan is different, based on the project’s needs and timing. We will thoroughly analyse your target audience and for example will help you to:

professionally write jacket copy, author bio, and tag lines

create your author pages, e.g. on Amazon, Goodreads, Google+

personalize guidelines for your marketing strategy

specify steps and projects for your book launch

create publicity angles and press release topics,

show you how to pitch bookstores and libraries

learn how to find book bloggers and book reviewers

organise book giveaways, online campaigns, contests

use successfully social media networking and marketing and how to save time at your online activities

.One-on-One Crash Course
Not every channel is appropriate for every book marketing project, so we’ll recommend what will work best for you. And: None of these activities we suggest for your book marketing will cost you an extra dime. Important for your success at this Online Seminar is your willingness to learn and to work actively on your platform.
The package includes at least 3 hours of phone or Skype consultation to discuss the plan, answer questions, and help you determine your next steps. Call it a one-on-one crash course in book marketing, targeted for your title and audience.

.That’s Not All…
There is way more what you get out of this Online Seminar: Exposure to hundred-thousands of readers on our online presentations, unlimited book marketing consultations by email for up to three months, an article / author-interview to introduce you and your book to readers, instructions / checklist / links for you to use for your book promotions. Did I mention that this 3-months Online Seminar will be very affordable, less than $2 a day. All in all only US $179.
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There is another way to get help with publishing and book marketing: our phone / Skype consultations, which we will introduce in the next blog article. Stay tuned!

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If you would like to get more support in all things publishing, have your book intensively promoted and learn how to navigate social media sites – or to learn how you can make yourself a name as an author through content writing: We offer all this and more for only $179 for three months – or less than $2 per day! Learn more about this customized Online Seminar / Consulting for writers: http://www.111Publishing.com/Seminars

Please check out all previous posts of this blog (there are more than 1,100 of them : ) if you haven’t already. Why not sign up to receive them regularly by email? Just click on “Follow” in the upper line on each page – and then on “LIKE” next to it. There is also the “SHARE” button underneath each article for easy sharing at Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr and StumpleUpon.
Thanks a lot for following:

More vital than knowing when and where to network with your readers or peers or to post your blogs, is finding like-minded groups of people, such as Google+ reader and blogger Communities. There you can reach new people who are likely interested in what you are writing or blogging about…

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Start Conversations and Share Relevant Content
Google+ Communities are for users who are more interested in vibrant conversations around topics than they are about self-promotion. Quality community members are those who share relevant content that sparks conversation or debate, and who participate in conversations by leaving comments and +1’ing posts. Users whose intentions are to promote themselves or spam the community will most likely be removed by a moderator, so be careful how you approach your communities.

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Posts within a community are indexed by Googleand will be found in organic search results –which means higher ranking for you on Google’s Search Engine!

.Avoid Too Much Promotion
When you join a community, you can find people who are interested in the same topics you are. Depending on the type of community, you may have to wait for approval before becoming a member. Google+ Communities are for users who are more interested in vibrant conversations around topics than they are about self-promotion. Quality community members are those who share relevant content that sparks conversation or debate, and who participate in conversations by leaving comments and +1’s. Users whose intentions are to promote themselves or spam the community will most likely be removed by a moderator, so be careful how you approach your communities..

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How to Join a Google+ Community Step by Step

Go to the left side of your Google+ page with your cursor

click on communities

search or type in e.g. “books” or “blogging” and click the magnifying glass symbol

almost 60! communities show up, sorted by membership size

choose for example “Promote Your Book” with over 2,799 members and thousands of posts

click on their image and see lots of posts

on top you will see “Join this community to post or comment”

we are polite and click “Join community”

then we introduce ourselves and greet the owner of the community

unless most other pages, this one does not require to choose a category

you can post right away, either text and an image or just an image

Interesting:
A great feature of Google+ posts to a community is that you can edit them at any time.
– everyone in the community can read / answer to your post (also not your timeline)
– at most communities you can also choose if you want notifications to your email
– on the left hand side you will find another search function where you can search this community
– you can also see who is a member of your community and follow them
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Start Your Own Google+ CommunityWhen you own or moderate a Google+ community, you can create categories to organize discussions, remove offensive content, highlight great posts, add moderators to help you keep the conversation going, invite members, or edit your community. You can invite people to join your community – up to 500 people at a time. Having more people usually increases the number of posts in your community, and encourages others to use it.

Tip: Anyone can share a community by clicking the “Share this community” button. When you click it, you’ll create a Google+ post that links to the community’s page. But it won’t create an actual invitation for people to accept or decline. Learn more at Google+ Support .

.Google+ is very internationalIn fact, nearly three-quarters of the Google+ user base is non-American. And it’s passion-based. There is mostly a superior level of the conversations, the obviously great anti-troll features and the fact that Google+ has zero advertising – but does have the best photo tools and video Hangouts. However THE one important reason for writers is the fact that they will increase YOUR Google Search Engine Ranking tremendously – and with it your books exposure!

Which Google+ Communities do YOU recommend?

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If you would like to get more support in all things publishing, have your book intensively promoted and learn how to navigate social media sites – or to learn how you can make yourself a name as an author through content writing: We offer all this and more for only $179 for three months – or less than $2 per day! Learn more about this customized Online Seminar / Consulting for writers: http://www.111Publishing.com/Seminars

Please check out all previous posts of this blog (there are more than 1,120 of them : ) if you haven’t already. Why not sign up to receive them regularly by email? Just click on “Follow” in the upper line on each page – and then on “LIKE” next to it. There is also the “SHARE” button underneath each article for easy sharing at Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr and StumpleUpon.
Thanks a lot for following:

“It doesn’t help authors to say that 70% of the book market is in print if only a small fraction of that money ends up in authors’ pockets. What we want to see is the combined effect of royalty rate, sales volume, and sale price. These three factors combine to give us a true picture of comparative earnings, as shown in our pie charts” says Hugh Howey, founder of Author Earnings.
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A Fantastic Report About Author Earnings
He explains: “Sports stars, musicians, actors— their salaries are often discussed. This is less true for authors, and it creates unrealistic expectations for those who pursue writing as a career. Now with every writer needing to choose between self-publishing and submitting to traditional publishers, the decision gets even more difficult. Online Book Retailers, such as Barnes&Noble or Amazon don’t share their e-book sales figures.”
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Website for Authors, by AuthorsAuthor Earnings, a website by authors and for authors looks at independent authors, small/medium publishers, Amazon published, Big Five published and uncategorized Single-Authors. All the pie-charts on Author Earnings are divided into all the types of publishing. The purpose is to gather and share information so that writers can make informed decisions. Another mission is to call for change within the publishing community, for better pay and fairer terms in all contracts.

.Some of the Findings

• Big-5 publishers are massively reliant on their most established authors – for 63% of their e-book revenue.
• Roughly 46% of traditional publishing’s fiction book dollars are coming from e-books.
• In absolute numbers, more self-published authors are earning a living wage today than Big-5 authors.
• Readers are interested in both: the quality of a book and the price
• Very few authors who debut with major publishers make enough money to earn a living—and modern advances don’t help.
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Publishing in Print or Digital – or Both?Author Earnings:“How much money is being spent on print overall and how much on Amazon’s digital storefront? Before we got to money, we looked at actual unit sales, which came out to be 61% digital and 39% print. That’s a total different picture, comparing versions at a retailer that sells both: ebooks and print books.”
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These, so far, nine extensive reports – chock-full with charts, explanations and publishing tips – are a valuable resource for every author. Here is the latest from October 2014: Author Earnings.

Another question: Why should you have a print book and not the digital version only? In a former blog post we gave you all the reasons to offer both: e-book and print. Check these reasons if they are valid for you too.

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If you would like to get more support in all things publishing, have your book intensively promoted and learn how to navigate social media sites – or to learn how you can make yourself a name as an author through content writing: We offer all this and more for only $179 for three months – or less than $2 per day! Learn more about this customized Online Seminar / Consulting for writers: http://www.111Publishing.com/Seminars

Please check out all previous posts of this blog (there are more than 1,100 of them : ) if you haven’t already. Why not sign up to receive them regularly by email? Just click on “Follow” in the upper line on each page – and then on “LIKE” next to it. There is also the “SHARE” button underneath each article where you can submit the article to Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr and StumpleUpon.